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Mina

Stoning in Mina

Reem Al Faisal, 2008

On the 8th of Dhu al-Hijja, pilgrims camp in Mina before proceeding to ‘Arafat. Also, on the morning of the 10th of Dhu al-Hijja (the third day of Hajj), pilgrims go to Mina to perform the first stoning. Seven pebbles are used here to stone the largest pillar known as Jamrat al-‘Aqaba. Pilgrims spend three or four days in Mina where tents are set up for their convenience. Moreover, between the 11th and 13th of Dhu al-Hijja (Days 4-6), pilgrims return to Mina for further ritual stoning of all pillars after which the Hajj is complete and they return to Mecca for their final tawaf.

Camping at Mina during the ‘Eid by Sadiq Bey (c.1880)

Victoria and Albert Museum, PH.2130-1924

This evocative image was taken by General Muhammad Sadiq Bey, the first photographer of Mecca and Medina which he first visited in 1861. It captures the valley of Mina with mosque and buildings in the background and the pilgrims, their animals and tents. It depicts the encampment in Mina that takes place on the 10th of Dhu al-Hijja (Day 3) at ‘Eid al-Adha (festival of sacrifice).

Sadiq Bey used a device known as a wet-plate collodion camera. Collodion was a light-sensitive emulsion which was coated onto a sheet of glass. Glass negatives produced clearer photographic images, and could be used to make a large number of prints using albumen-coated paper.